Bramble (CR +1)

These indifferent to wicked watchers of the woodlands haunt dark thickets in forests and fields, stalking the unwary. Most dangerous in the tangled briar patches and thorny copses they call home, brambles often make clear trails through their domains that turn into winding mazes designed to confuse and entrap victims.

A bramble's body is covered with bark-like skin and wrapped in tangled, thorny vines. Its face is wizened and cruel, and yellow eyes peer out from beneath its prickly brows.

Creating a Bramble

“Bramble” is an inherited template that can be added to any living, corporeal creature that breathes air (referred to hereafter as the base creature). If you wish, the bramble can be an acquired template via a magical poison or curse. A bramble uses all the base creature's statistics and special abilities except as noted here.

Challenge Rating: As base creature +1

Alignment: Any non-good.

Type: The creature's type changes to plant with the appropriate augmented subtype. Do not recalculate base attack bonuses, saves, or skill points.

Attacks: The bramble gains a gore attack if it did not already have one. If it has other natural attacks the gore attack is secondary, otherwise it is primary. The damage for this gore depends on the base creature's size.

Prickle Whip (Ex)

Once per day, a bramble can unravel and detach one of the tangled strands that form its body. Doing so requires a move action (as per drawing a melee weapon). This strand functions as a whip whose damage is lethal and is not negated by armor or natural armor of any value. The prickle whip becomes stiff, brittle, and useless after 1 hour.

Thorn Dart (Ex)

Twice per day per Hit Die, a bramble can pull a long thorn from its body as a free action. This thorn is identical to a dart, and the bramble is automatically proficient with it.

Thorny Grasp (Ex)

A bramble deals automatic piercing damage equal to the base damage for the bramble's gore attack (unmodified by Strength) each round it grapples a foe. In addition, any creature that attempts to bull rush, grapple, overrun, or trip a bramble takes this damage as well.

Woodland Stride (Ex)

A bramble may move through any sort of undergrowth at its natural speed without taking damage or suffering any other impairment. However, undergrowth that has been magically manipulated to impede motion still affects the bramble.